SEALIFT IN SUPPORT OF THE PERSIAN GULF

Key to the buildup and sustainment of forces was the workhorse of the

strategic mobility triad sealift. Sealift in Operations DESERT SHIELD and

DESERT STORM was composed of ships under MSC operational control as

well as domestic and foreign ships under charter to MSC. The size and

swiftness of the buildup required the United States to use almost every

element of its sealift capability. Almost all Navy sealift elements were

involved in the operation and they were supplemented by large numbers of

chartered domestic and foreign ships. During the entire operation, 385 ships

delivered unit equipment, related support, and petroleum products.

The sealift logistics deployment and sustainment effort took place in two

phases. The first sealift phase extended from August to November [1990]

and was designed to deploy and sustain forces to deter further Iraqi

aggression. During that period, sealift moved the equipment of more than

four Army divisions along with sustainment for the initial defensive support

requirements. By September, more than 100 of TRANSCOM’s MSCcontrolled

ships had delivered the equipment and sustainment for the

100,000 US military personnel who had deployed to the theater. When the

first sealift phase ended, more than 180 ships were assigned or under charter

to MSC and nearly 3.5 million tons of fuel and 1.2 million tons of cargo had

been delivered.

The second phase began in December and extended until the end of the

conflict. By 15 January [1991], the total number of US forces deployed in

the theater had more than doubled. From the beginning, while deploying a

unit, ships were also loaded with sustainment supplies required by the forces

in theater. By March, an average of 4,200 tons of cargo arrived in theater

daily. The average one-way voyage for the Operations DESERT SHIELD

and DESERT STORM sealift covered nearly 8,700 miles.

SOURCE: DOD Final Report to Congress

Conduct of the Persian Gulf War, April 1992